Wendy McElroy has 7 audiobooks on Listento.it, narrated by 7 narrators, with an average listener rating of 5★ across 1 ratings. The most-rated is Nigeria and West Africa.
Nigeria and West Africa
Summary
With a culture dating back to at least 700 B.C., West Africa has a long and rich history. British influence after the 16th century, and especially in the 18th century, changed the region's course. By 1967, Nigeria was at war with itself, with the "Republic of Biafra" produced in Nigeria's eastern region. Over a million people perished. This is the story of Nigeria's struggle, which typifies the history and outlook of the West African region. The World's Political Hot Spots series explains the basis of conflicts in some of the world's most politically sensitive areas. Many of these regions are in today's headlines, and tensions recently have become violent in virtually all of them. Each presentation covers up to 10 centuries of background, revealing how and why today's problems occur.
©1992 Carmichael & Carmichael, Inc. / Knowledge Products (P)1992 Carmichael & Carmichael, Inc. / Knowledge Products
Neither Bullets Nor Ballots: Essays on Voluntaryism
Summary
The Voluntaryists are libertarians who have organized to promote non-political strategies to achieve a free society. We reject electoral politics, in theory and in practice as incompatible with libertarian goals. Governments must cloak their actions in an aura of moral legitimacy in order to sustain their power, and political methods invariably strengthen that legitimacy. Voluntarists seek instead to delegitimize the state through education, and we advocate withdrawal of the cooperation and tacit consent on which state power ultimately depends.
©1983 Carl Watner (P)2018 Rodger Paxton
On Liberty & Vindication of the Rights of Women
Summary
In On Liberty, John Stuart Mill advocated individual liberty based on a philosophical concept called utilitarianism, or "the greatest happiness for the greater number". This intellectual tradition rejects natural rights, such as those in Jefferson's Declaration of Independence. Despite beginning with a different theoretical foundation than natural rights proponents, Mill reaches a similar conclusion, that diversity in individual thought and action ultimately benefits society. Vindication of the Rights of Woman examines the tumultuous life of Mary Wollstonecraft and the social conditions against which she struggled. It explores her call for female independence against the backdrop of 18th-century England, the French Revolution, and the changing role of women. Mary Wollstonecraftt lived the life she advocated, defying accepted customs for female employment, marriage, and family life.
©1986 Knowledge Products, Inc. (P)1986 Knowledge Products, Inc.
Civil Disobedience and the Liberator (Knowledge Products) Giants of Political Thought Series
Summary
Civil Disobedience is Henry David Thoreau's argument for the deliberate violation of laws for reasons of conscience. Thoreau's concept is based on the belief that no law should command blind obedience, and that non-cooperation with unjust laws is both morally correct and socially beneficial. The Liberator was a leading voice for abolitionism in the nineteenth century. Abolitionism called for the immediate emancipation of slaves, based on the principle that individuals own their bodies, labor, and the fruits of their labor. Abolitionists vigorously opposed gradualists, who called for phasing out slavery over a long period of time; they also opposed colonizationists, who wished to relocate former slaves to another country.
©1985 Carmichael & Carmichael, Inc. and Knowledge Products (P)1985 Carmichael & Carmichael, Inc. and Knowledge Products
Democracy in America
Summary
Alexis de Tocqueville, a young French aristocrat, captured the essence of nineteenth-century America in his penetrating work, Democracy in America. The democratic concept of equality was emerging as a political reality in America, and it threatened the aristocracy of Europe; it produced a society of individualists hungry for self improvement. In this classic treatise, Tocqueville weighed the advantages of democracy against its dangers. He asked: Is the tendency toward equality a tendency toward liberty? Can the majority be restrained to protect the freedom of individuals and minorities? In pondering these questions, Tocqueville presented an unsurpassed picture of American government, culture, and attitudes. He proclaimed a new nation with a new theory of human interaction: America, ruled by the will of the majority.
©1987 Carmichael & Carmichael, Inc. (P)1987 Carmichael & Carmichael, Inc.
The Vietnam War, Part 2
Summary
After WWII, Korea was divided in half at the 38th parallel. To the north were the Communists; to the south were the United Nations peacekeeping forces. In June 1950, North Korean soldiers backed by Soviet-built tanks poured across the parallel. The Korean conflict became one of the first expressions of the Cold War between Russia and America. It was an attempt to balance the power that had been thrown so badly out of alignment by WWII. But Korea would bring victory to neither side. It would merely reaffirm the deadlock. In 1954, the country of Vietnam was also divided in half at the 17th parallel. To the north was the Communist regime of Ho Chi Minh; to the south was the America-backed regime of Ngo Dinh Diem. Elections to unify the country were scheduled for 1956, but they were never held. Instead, each side used military means to accomplish political goals. To America, Vietnam symbolized her ability to contain communism in Asia. To the Communists, Vietnam symbolized their ability to defeat America in warfare. It became a struggle to the death between East and West, not only between military forces but also between opposing ideologies. Meanwhile, the fabric of Vietnamese society had been torn apart. By 1961, the Cold War was escalating, with John F. Kennedy in the White House and Nikita Khrushchev in the Kremlin. Both Sides held nuclear weapons, and they tested each other for weakness. But by 1964, Kennedy had been assassinated and the Soviets were at odds with communist China. The new American president, Lyndon B. Johnson, found himself trapped in a war without end. His solution was to escalate America's military commitment in Vietnam. Between November 1963 and July 1965, Johnson transformed America's limited engagement in Vietnam into an open-ended commitment.
©1990 Knowledge Products, Inc. (P)1990 Knowledge Products, Inc.
The Middle East
Summary
By the end of World War I, Britain had promised control of Palestine to both Arabs and Jews. Each of these peoples claimed a longstanding right to the same piece of land, and violence was inevitable. This presentation examines how and why this magical land has become a virtual war zone.
©1991 Knowledge Products, Inc. (P)1991 Knowledge Products, Inc.